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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25565329">buzz</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/petasos/pseuds/petasos'>petasos</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>and you'd come back to me [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Adventure Zone (Podcast)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Gen, Implied/Referenced Sex, Minor Barry Bluejeans/Lup, Minor Magnus Burnsides/Taako, Minor The Director | Lucretia/Lup, Sibling Bonding</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-07-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-05 12:48:48</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,302</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25565329</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/petasos/pseuds/petasos</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Nails are painted, hair is braided, and boys are discussed.</p><p>(scrapped chapter six of <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/15663963/chapters/36386028">steps to falling in love.</a>)</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Lup &amp; Taako (The Adventure Zone)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>and you'd come back to me [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1852666</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>11</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>buzz</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>this is from '18 but i spruced it up a bit. it was going to be chapter 6 for stfil (and take place directly after the previous one), but as you can see... that fic sort of got abandoned (for now.) anyways.... edited, spruced up, whatever. it's still from over two years ago so it's noooot that great but hey!</p><p>enjoy some brother-sister bonding!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Hey, Lulu?”</p><p>Lup looks up from painting her nails a glorious shade of red to match her jacket. “‘sup?”</p><p>“I slept with Magnus,” he says, as if it’s that simple.</p><p>“Kinda figured. He's all weird ‘round me. Like, one night stand type thing?”</p><p>“Noooot <em>exactly</em>?”</p><p>Lup meets his eyes, her lips pursed. “‘kay, <em>more than once</em>? Taako…?”</p><p>“Uh,” he says, breaking eye contact with her. “Dunno <em>how</em> many times exactly. It, uh, became a <em>thing</em>. Like, fuck buddies? Friends with -”</p><p>Lup laughs so hard she smears nail polish across the back of her hand. “You <em>what</em>?”</p><p>“Was a long year!” he protests. “Y’just don't spend a year with someone n’<em>not</em> get a <em>bit</em> close, plus his dick sucking game's on point.”</p><p>“<em>Koko</em>!”</p><p>“I know, I know, ‘don't fuck coworkers,’” he groans, plopping down next to her. “Like you haven't been bangin’ Lucretia ‘n thirsting after <em>Barold</em>.”</p><p>“<em>Not</em> what I was gonna say, bro. You - y’know - usually don't do more than one night stands.”</p><p>Technically speaking, Lup’s right - Taako doesn't do <em>relationships</em>. Not yet, at least. He's kinda waiting for a guy who can keep up with him, put up with him. He doesn't believe in soulmates or true love or whatever, but he does know there's gotta be someone out there. Even if he never meets them. He probably won’t, given their current situation.</p><p>Either way, he’s quiet for long enough that Lup gives him That Look, the one that means she’s reading him better than anyone else can.</p><p>Lup moves on to her left hand. “You - shiiit, ‘ko, you like him, <em>don't</em> you?”</p><p>“Nuh-uh. Not like <em>that</em>! I mean, sure, he's the choicest piece of ass on this joint - you'd know, says you two banged.”</p><p>She points the brush at him, dripping some red paint onto her shorts. Taako knows her well enough to know that she’ll end up magicing it off in a few minutes, anything to get the stain out. “That was <em>one time</em>. Never happened again.”</p><p>“Well, he says I'm better in the sack anyways -”</p><p>“Nope,” says Lup, snickering at him, “he's just butterin’ you up, you knobhead.”</p><p>“That's rude. Respect your elders.”</p><p>“Pssh. We both know <em>I'm</em> the older one, baby bro.”</p><p>Taako grabs the bottle of nail polish from her hands, and she lunges towards him, laughing like a kid. He holds it over her head, dangling it by two fingers, his fingers buzzing with magic, and Lup’s eyes widen.</p><p>“You <em>wouldn't</em>.”</p><p>“Try me.”</p><p>“Give it back, you fucking asswipe.”</p><p>“Language,” he says, and taps the bottle. The red slowly starts to change, going from crimson to a vaguely maroon color, and then dark purple, finally settling on an inky blue. The tips of his fingers feel slightly numb, settling in the beds of his nails. “Now <em>this</em> is a good color, Lu!”</p><p>“Change it back,” she protests, wiggling her unpainted fingers at him. “This - <em>this</em> is a crime of <em>fashion</em>, Taako!”</p><p>“Fashion smashion,” he says, grinning, before letting the polish revert back to crimson.</p><p>Lup grabs it from him and returns to painting her nails, blowing on the drying ones. “You <em>do</em> like him, don’cha?”</p><p>“Do not. He's got a nice ass, that's <em>all</em>. ‘sides, you get all the fun, not fair if I can't have a smidge.”</p><p>“Mhm.” Lup waggles her eyebrows at him, screwing the lid back on the nail polish. “Koko, what do I look like to you?”</p><p>“Me, but not as hot,” he replies, grinning.</p><p>“<em>I'm</em> the hotter twin, bro-bro. <em>No</em>, I was the head of the evocation department at the IPRE for ten years. <em>Ten</em>. M’smarter than I look, n’that includes when my brother is BS-ing me. You think you're soooo smooth, but let's be real, we're twins.”</p><p>She's right - over a hundred years together, joined since before birth. Sometimes he wonders if they were meant to be conjoined, two people in one body. Or maybe they're one person in two separate bodies, only complete together.</p><p>Whatever it is, she knows him like the back of her hand, and vice versa - he knows her favorite things, how a small shift in her sleeping form means she's having a nightmare, how to know when she's into someone, and everything about her. She's him, but <em>better</em>, not useless on her own like he often is.</p><p>After all, she's the reason they got into the Institute in the first place.</p><p>Taako settles down next to her, shifting his weight so he doesn't bother her. “S’not like that. The only one for me is you.”</p><p>“Gross,” she says, but leans her head on his shoulder. “Just ‘cause we're soulmates doesn't mean y’can't see people - like, I'm boning Lucretia. You're boning Magnus. It's okay if you like-like him, or whatever kids say these days. Our, what’s it, <em>bond</em>? That's not gonna go away just cause you get all gross and romantic. Go, be gay, whatever. Not like I can do all <em>that</em> with you, n’definitely don't want to.”</p><p>“Yeah, no offense, but you're not my type, <em>sis</em>,” Taako says pointedly, then moves away. His fingers still feel slightly numb. He needs to do something with his hands, needs to shake this feeling out somehow. The tip of his tongue sticks out between his teeth. “Lemme braid your hair.”</p><p>“Mhm.” She moves so she's sitting on the ground, and he moves his legs to encompass her, taking her hair in his hands. “I really like Barry.”</p><p>“No shit.”</p><p>“I know that we - we get a lot longer, usually seven hundred or so. He's human. Wouldn't work out for long.”</p><p>“Buuuut,” Taako says, plaiting her hair, “but, we might live forever. If you like him, go for it. YOLO, ‘less you're us.”</p><p>“I've died - uhhh, four times now?”</p><p>“Yup.”</p><p>“YOLO is right,” Lup snickers, her head moving a bit.</p><p>He has to stop and redo a section, his fingers working at her dark brown hair with ease. It's the only difference between them - he's a bottle blond, except at the roots, she keeps her hair natural for the most part. Usually keeps it in a braid or ponytail.</p><p>He keeps his short. He’s always wondered what it would like to grow his hair out - make it longer. Honestly, though, Taako’s got a feeling he’ll never find out, not unless he uses transmutation magic to lengthen it. And as cool as <em>that </em>would be…</p><p>It’s just not for him.</p><p>“You ever think… I dunno, we're gonna live so <em>long</em>?” Taako pauses, brushing his thumb against the bumpy braid. “‘least six, seven more lifetimes than Barry, Luce…” He pauses, and it’s almost like an afterthought when he says it. “...Magnus.”</p><p>“Yuup. And <em>we're</em> young. Barely adult elves.”</p><p>“Mmmm, I'd say we're more adult than most people. <em>Most </em>elves don't grow up on the road. So what if we haven't scratched a hundred? <em>Most</em> elves aren't head of fucking the Evocation department, most elves didn't graduate at top of the ‘cademy, most elves aren't on - oh, cycle eleven? They aren’t stuck in a loop like this -”</p><p>“It's not a <em>bad</em> cycle,” she says, cutting him off before he can finish. “Looks like civilization. Bet there’ll be some good food down there, maybe some recipes to add to your book”</p><p>“We got here yesterday,” Taako interjects, shaking his head. “But, hey! Maybe we'll find the damn Light this time.”</p><p>“Y’never know.” Then Lup’s voice takes on a very teasing tone, looking up at him through her lashes as he pauses working his fingers through her hair, fixing out her braid and making sure it looks good. “Now, <em>Magnus</em> - what've you done with him?”</p><p>“Not having this conversation, Lulu.”</p><p>“Bummer. I was gonna tell you all about what Lucretia's like in bed, buuut -”</p><p>“Spill,” says Taako, still working at her hair.</p><p>It doesn’t make the feeling in his fingers go away.</p>
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